Protein Sequences as Biochemical Evidence Flashcards
1
Q
What are proteins?
A
Proteins consist of long chains of particular amino acids linked together in a precise sequence determined by the DNA.
2
Q
How many amino acids makeup proteins?
A
20 amino acids make up 20,000 proteins.
3
Q
How can protein sequences be used as evidence?
A
- Animals from the same species will have identical amino acid sequences.
- Different species may have different amino acids or amino acids arranged in a different order.
- The degree of difference between proteins enables an estimate to be made of the amount of evolution that has taken place. The longer the period of time, the greater the number of amino acids that are different.
4
Q
What are Ubiquitous proteins?
A
A group of proteins that appears to be in all species that carry out the same function.
5
Q
What is an example of a ubiquitous protein?
A
Cytochrome C.
6
Q
What is Cytochrome C’s function?
A
A protein important in the electron transport system in cellular respiration.
7
Q
How can Cytochrome C as a ubiquitous protein be used as evidence?
A
It can be compared and used to infer how recently the common ancestor of two species existed.
